Latest revision as of 17:29, October 24, 2012

The holy, glorious, all-laudable Apostle Philip (of the Seventy), one of the Seven Deacons, is commemorated by the Church on October 11. He was born in Palestine, was married, and had children. He was not the St. Philip (November 14) who was one of the Twelve Apostles.

After the Descent of the Holy Spirit, the Twelve Apostles made Philip, along with six others, a deacon in the Church of Jerusalem. They appointed him to deal with the offerings of the faithful and attend to the concerns of the widowed, the orphaned, and the needy. When the persecution of Christians began, and the Jews stoned the ProtomartyrStephen, the eldest of the Seven Deacons, the Apostle Philip left Jerusalem and settled in Samaria. There he successfully preached Christianity. Among the disciple's converts was the noted magician Simon, who "after being baptized, continued with Philip." (Acts 8:9-13)

At the command of an angel of the Lord, St. Philip set out upon the road connecting Jerusalem with Gaza. There he met an official of the empress of Ethiopia, whom he also converted to Christianity (Acts 8:26-39). The holy disciple Philip tirelessly preached the Word of God in many of the lands of the Near East adjoining Palestine. At Jerusalem the Apostles made him a bishop and sent him to Tralles in Asia Minor, where he also baptized many. St. Philip died in old age.